Dogs - Passports - Resrtictions

onesea

Well-Known Member
Joined
28 Oct 2011
Messages
3,841
Location
South West
Visit site
We are thinking a year a ahead here however…
Based on the Solent and might have a couple of months+ to sail next summer and more in future.

HOWEVER we have a pair of dogs and realise this will take some planning.

Please don’t debate the morals of dogs on boats. Ours enjoy coming with us and get upset when they do not (normally non sailing days prep days), they react to there life jackets similar to there leads. Both Prefer not to foul on the boat but both will and understand they can (astro turf provided).

As I understand PLEASE correct me.

With British Pet Passport:
Europe:

Chip Rabies vaccination, Passport, valid (10 days) Dog health certificate AND cannot arrive or return by boat,

Channel Islands:
Chip, Rabies vaccination can arrive or return by boat,

Ireland N&S:
Same as Europe - however have read some exceptions?

Sicily Isles:
No restrictions.

However if the dog gets European Passport, Chip & rabies vaccination etc:
Dogs can arrive in UK by boat, but have to leave by ferry and do not need health certificate,

To get a European Dog passport:
Dogs must have Chip Rabies vaccination, Passport, Dog health certificate.

Can I jump on ferry with dogs on British passport etc and go to European vet to apply for passport, return next day?
I have got French (and probably Irish) mailing address available if it eases situation for post. The European passport is valid for life then provided we keep up the required vaccinations in the uk

What are vets & passport costs involved?
Both dogs European rescues (one with passport one lost prior to Reno ing with us) but no vaccinations since covid.
 
It's not as simple as you suggest. UK vaccinations are not valid for a French pet passport and cannot be recorded by a UK vet. Also I believe you can only bring a pet into the UK using an authorised carrier ie ferry. I'm not sure about going into France but I think it's the same.
Another problem for you is that it seems the ferries no longer take foot passengers - you'd have to travel by bus/coach.
All in all its a total minefield ... ...
 
It's not as simple as you suggest. UK vaccinations are not valid for a French pet passport and cannot be recorded by a UK vet. Also I believe you can only bring a pet into the UK using an authorised carrier ie ferry. I'm not sure about going into France but I think it's the same.
Another problem for you is that it seems the ferries no longer take foot passengers - you'd have to travel by bus/coach.
All in all its a total minefield ... ...
This is where I am looking for the traps and loop holes for the minefield. Where there is a will there is a way.

Foot passenger thing might not be problem if planned in advance to get to France, take the car this winter to get passport. Use family to bring dogs to us by car after passage.

Its the knowledge of restrictions and possibilities that's important. Even your content has given clues:
"Exemptions
You don’t have to use an approved carrier or route if you travel to England, Scotland or Wales from:

UK countries
the Channel Islands
the Isle of Man
the Republic of Ireland"
Pet travel: approved air, sea and rail carriers and routes

Ireland is of particular interest if we go North. The Channel Islands if we don't get that far, ironically France is nice to know about as we know they are difficulty.
 
Onesea. I have a dog on board and have travelled to Portugal and back (2020 and 2021) and then south again in 2022. Going south the first time was no problem as we were still in the EU. While in Portugal I got an EU pet passport and returned home via Ireland, going direct from A Coruna to Cork and then to Penzance. All perfectly legal on my own boat (going direct to the UK from France/Spain has to be on a ferry with a car). Coming back down last year no problem but I went first to the Channel Islands before France. You can‘t go to France and then the Channel Islands on your own boat. Always difficult pre-Brexit but now a nightmare. You can now go to Northern Ireland on your boat (thanks to the Windsor settlement) but you have to sign a declaration that you won’t take the dog to the south. Honestly you couldn’t make it up. Pre-Brexit and even pre-EU you had complete freedom across the Irish Sea with your pet.
 
We are thinking a year a ahead here however…
Based on the Solent and might have a couple of months+ to sail next summer and more in future.

HOWEVER we have a pair of dogs and realise this will take some planning.

Please don’t debate the morals of dogs on boats. Ours enjoy coming with us and get upset when they do not (normally non sailing days prep days), they react to there life jackets similar to there leads. Both Prefer not to foul on the boat but both will and understand they can (astro turf provided).

As I understand PLEASE correct me.

With British Pet Passport:
Europe:

Chip Rabies vaccination, Passport, valid (10 days) Dog health certificate AND cannot arrive or return by boat,

Channel Islands:
Chip, Rabies vaccination can arrive or return by boat,

Ireland N&S:
Same as Europe - however have read some exceptions?

Sicily Isles:
No restrictions.

However if the dog gets European Passport, Chip & rabies vaccination etc:
Dogs can arrive in UK by boat, but have to leave by ferry and do not need health certificate,

To get a European Dog passport:
Dogs must have Chip Rabies vaccination, Passport, Dog health certificate.

Can I jump on ferry with dogs on British passport etc and go to European vet to apply for passport, return next day?
I have got French (and probably Irish) mailing address available if it eases situation for post. The European passport is valid for life then provided we keep up the required vaccinations in the uk

What are vets & passport costs involved?
Both dogs European rescues (one with passport one lost prior to Reno ing with us) but no vaccinations since covid.
Thanks for rising this question. It's really important for anyone who owns the dogs. I didn't find any solution apart of using approved route to bring dog back in uk with exemption of Ireland. The really joke is you can leave UK with a dog but you can't bring it back. WTF???
Same rule works for any dog's passport EU or UK. So you need to cross Channel with the dog using approved route pick it up in UK and then continue your journey.
As another thing to mention I personally know 2 different persons who brought their dogs on the private jet which suppose to use same approved route but noone even checked their crew and anyone on board as they all were British Citizen. So i confused and disappointed about this approach. 😕
 
Onesea. I have a dog on board and have travelled to Portugal and back (2020 and 2021) and then south again in 2022. Going south the first time was no problem as we were still in the EU. While in Portugal I got an EU pet passport and returned home via Ireland, going direct from A Coruna to Cork and then to Penzance. All perfectly legal on my own boat (going direct to the UK from France/Spain has to be on a ferry with a car). Coming back down last year no problem but I went first to the Channel Islands before France. You can‘t go to France and then the Channel Islands on your own boat. Always difficult pre-Brexit but now a nightmare. You can now go to Northern Ireland on your boat (thanks to the Windsor settlement) but you have to sign a declaration that you won’t take the dog to the south. Honestly you couldn’t make it up. Pre-Brexit and even pre-EU you had complete freedom across the Irish Sea with your pet.
As I understand I can take my dog to NI provided he’s been seen by vet to have a worming tablet Prior to arrival*.

I hear it’s possible to get Eu Passport for your dog in Europe on the same or next day?

*that might be expensive but will be fun to watch, or we will learn something. Ever tried getting a 40kg dog to take a tablet he doesn’t want. Best was when the 20kg dog tried to pinch it, he gulped it down, then realised his mistake.
 
Planning ahead for this year….

Does anybody know of any Irish vets who will issue a European Pet passport for a dog to a UK resident; ideally on the SW coast ?

We will be travelling from Anglesey to Baltimore with our dog before heading over to France.

Any significant changes in the rules known for 2025 from the last updates on this thread.

TIA
 
Some info here...we thought about bringing our Dog to Spain a few times but always seemed too risky in terms of trying to comply with some silly rules and some sensible ones, coupled with the risk of falling foul of some dickhead official who decides the only safe thing to do is put the dog into quarantine for a few months...

https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/b76e9-brexit-movement-of-pets/
 
Top